


“I Don’t Have time to Cater to Your Whims”

by forgetmenotjimmy



Series: You become [3]
Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: Episode: s02e09 Singularity, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-28
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2019-03-25 03:35:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13825614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forgetmenotjimmy/pseuds/forgetmenotjimmy
Summary: S209: Singularity: Commander Tucker to Sub-Commander T’Pol: “I don’t have time to cater to your whims.”





	“I Don’t Have time to Cater to Your Whims”

Sub-Commander T’Pol noticed them as soon as she left the turbolift. She approached her console at her usual stride and only recognised them as she reached the console. A pair of earplugs. Curious. The other crewmembers on the Bridge had not seemed to notice either the items or her studying of them. She picked them up curiously, turning one over in her hand. Although a human invention, Vulcans had something similar to protect their ears from loud noises, so their purpose was known to her. She considered their presence. It was unlikely that they had been left there by accident, she decided as she ran through the crewmembers who would have used the console since her last shift, and could not think of a logical reason they would require the items, or leave them. No, she concluded, the placing was most likely deliberate to coincide with her shift.

 She replaced them on the console and took her seat. As she read the latest scans of the path ahead, searching for points of interest for the Captain, she ran through possibilities of who could have placed the earplugs on her console and for what purpose. She first thought that it could be something the humans like to call a ‘prank’ or practical joke. If that was true, then the revelation of the trick would have been instantaneous. Something hidden in the object, or someone jumping out to laughingly explain the humour. She had read, and Ensign Sato had confirmed, that although some pranks could be performed upon enemies, the majority were a friendly gesture of mutual enjoyment as each party tried to outsmart the other. Whilst she knew of multiple crewmembers that disliked her, she could not imagine that any of them would risk censure by attempting the human ritual on her out of spite. The other scenario was equally unlikely. The closest she came to ‘friendly competition’ were her ‘arguments’ with Commander Tucker, as Ensign Sato had helpfully pointed out, the Commander seemed to derive enjoyment from ‘teasing’ her. Once she had been told that information, T’Pol could easily recognise amusement in the Commander’s eyes during some of their interactions. Though there were still times that she read genuine irritation or frustration in his frame, those times were growing rarer.

As she was still considering the logical explanations, the Commander and the Captain arrived on the Bridge. When she saw the Commander quickly glance at the items, the conclusion became fairly obvious. He caught her eye and looked away abruptly. They both knew now that he had left the earplugs and that she had realised that it had been him. The Bridge was hardly the place to discuss personal matters, however, so she did not broach the subject. She slipped them into her pocket and reported to the Ready Room, where the Captain discussed their next destination with both of them. When they’d been dismissed, the Commander excused himself to Engineering without a backward glance. Even though she now knew who had left them, the reason why was still not clear to her.

At lunch, she saw him in the Mess and went over with her tray. He saw her approach and whilst he looked uncomfortable, did not object to her joining him. T’Pol sat down and said simply.

“Explain.”

“I just, felt bad about the other day.” He saw her raised eyebrow and elaborated, scratching the back of his neck. “On the Bridge when I was working on the Captain’s chair…making that racket...” T’Pol considered for a moment.

“You foresee a similar incident occurring and wish to prevent it.”

“Not exactly. I...” He breathed in and looked at her squarely. “I’m sorry.” An apology through the gift of significant objects was not a new concept to her, but it was not a gesture she would have expected from the Commander. Not to say that he had ever proved predictable.

“This is the second time that you’ve tried to apologise for something beyond your control.” Third, she thought to herself, if one counted the occasion in which the hapless engineer had read her letter under the suspicion that it was secret orders from the Vulcans. He shrugged and said sincerely but also with a careful casualness.

“Well, it may not be logical, but it’s how I feel.” T’Pol took a moment to puzzle out his tone. She quickly concluded that he was deliberately portraying indifference to her opinion as a defence mechanism. She had noticed his usual matter-of-fact approach to his emotional responses to certain stimuli. For example, whenever someone would draw attention to his tendency to cry at romantic films, Tucker would freely admit it and contribute to the humorous remarks. However, there were occasions in which the Commander seemed to be nonchalant but T’Pol could recognise signs of tension in his frame and voice. She had first noticed this when witnessing Lieutenant Reed jokingly referring to the Commander’s brief pregnancy. Though the Commander’s only obvious reaction had been to join in the laughter around the table and change the topic to remembering the occasion in which the pair had been ‘caught with their pants down’ by the automated service station, T’Pol had noted that his shoulders had tensed and he seemed to withdraw from the conversation after that point, merely responding to comments from others and not contributing anything else. After this occasion, she had noted a similar reaction to comments she made to his display of strong emotions. Sometimes his reactions seemed to be conscious, when he would glare at her briefly, but at other times his reaction appeared to be unconscious, as he would not signal that he had taken offence at her words, but he would become subdued for a short period afterwards.

Ensign Sato had explained to her the complexity of humour and how it related to human friendships. When T’Pol had queried the confusing concept of practical jokes, the Ensign had endeavoured to enumerate how humans could utilise different forms of humour to form bonds with or establish dominance over others. The linguist emphasised that there were sometimes subtle differences between teasing and mocking, both in delivery of jokes or humorous remarks and who was making them. A close friend might have the ability to make a humorous observation about someone but a complete stranger saying the same might cause offence. You had to closely observe the perceived ‘butt’ of the joke, to gauge how your humour was being perceived. It could be easy to use humour to cause harm in error and friends often had to learn what each other’s limits and tolerances were.

Whilst considering this all needlessly complex and easy to misjudge, T’Pol acknowledged that it was an important facet in human nature and did not admit to anyone, except herself, that she did gain enjoyment from observing the interactions between her crewmates. After the Ensign’s lesson, T’Pol had realised that what she was witnessing in the Commander’s subtle reactions was the line from teasing to mocking being crossed. He was taking offence to what his friends considered harmless teasing but, for whatever reason, did not correct their assumptions. T’Pol had considered asking Ensign Sato, or perhaps the Commander himself, the reason for this, but had ultimately decided against it. She had learned that there were some topics humans were reluctant to discuss and she theorised that this would be one of them.

For the Vulcan officer, Commander Tucker was one of the most rewarding humans to study in terms of emotional responses; both in the scope of emotional reactions to differing stimuli and in the form of expression that the reactions took. Whilst she had become able to successfully predict his reaction to certain things, in general he surprised her. It was frustrating but also…stimulating. She was sometimes unsure of how to proceed when dealing with him but never reluctant. She was almost…excited. If Vulcans could become excited.

“You are correct. It is not logical.” His lips querked a smile and he said easily.

“Something we can agree on.” T’Pol was pleased to note that she could detect no lie in his words; she had not offended him with a potential slight on his behaviour. Their relationship surely had developed since their first meeting. Further, and not for the first time, T’Pol realised that her human colleague was making a gesture of friendship. The concept was not entirely alien to Vulcans, but at the same time there was no exact equivalent relationship in their culture. Still, because it was far more beneficial for the success of the mission that they be on friendly terms, she acknowledged this concession.

“Indeed.” Then quite suddenly she was saying. “There is something you could help me with.”

“Sure, what is it?”

“I was wondering if you could help me understand the human practice of ‘teasing’.” The Commander’s smile widened so much that his eyes sparkled a little in the light. T’Pol’s heart started to beat a little faster for no reason. He gestured with his hand for her to continue. “I understand that there can be a subtle difference between teasing and mocking and I would like to know why someone being mocked would not state that they are uncomfortable.” He considered her question, the smile dimming.

“That’s awfully specific. Why do you ask?”

“I have merely observed that some crew members take part in this ‘teasing’ but do not seem entirely comfortable with the ‘jokes’ being made about them.”

“You think someone is being bullied?” He seemed concerned by the idea and she was reminded of human’s endless compassion for others. Patiently, she said.

“This is what I am trying to ascertain.” Less patiently, Tucker sighed and explained.

“Well, there could be lots of reasons. Sometimes when you’re new to a place, especially as a kid, you want to fit in with other people; don’t want to ‘rock the boat’ so to speak. So if someone makes a joke that you don’t like, you might laugh along cos you don’t want to be left out.”

“And the other possible reasons.” The Commander sighed, clearly thinking.

“Huh, well, I guess you could not want to draw attention to whatever’s making you uncomfortable. Say if there’s a lot of things you and your buddies joke about but there’s just the one thing you don’t like. If you don’t make a big deal about it, they won’t notice it’s…making you uncomfortable, so they won’t go on about it. It’ll just be one of those things.”

“But if you say nothing, no one would know to avoid the topic and could cause harm unknowingly.” The Commander shifted in his seat, hands coming apart as he went on.

“Yeah, but then if you say something then they’ll know it’s not a joke, it’s something serious and you might not want anyone to know that.”

“Why?”

“Well, it could be embarrassing. Or…personal. Something you don’t want to talk about.” T’Pol was now fairly certain she had ascertained the reason the Commander did not mention his discomfort surrounding his pregnancy, but she did not feel the need to confirm her hypothesis. By his own admission, he might not wish to discuss it and the mention of it may bring him further distress. She may not understand him, but she had grown to respect him and his wayward emotions. He finished. “But I think it’s mostly to do with fitting in, you know, being the same as everyone else. You might have to ask Hoshi though; she knows more about this social stuff.”

“Thank you, Commander. This has been most enlightening.” He smiled again, frame losing some of the tension gained throughout their conversation.

“No problem. Anything else you wanna know?” Acknowledging that his offer was to show that no real offence had been taken, she inclined her head. Then she took a calculated risk.

“Perhaps you could further offer recompense by… catering to my next whim.” The Commander stared at her in surprise for a long moment before coughing and smiling awkwardly. He abruptly changed the subject, beginning to talk about the new planet they were approaching and the chances of it being inhabited, and T’Pol responded whilst analysing changes in his body language.

There was a slight reddening to his cheeks, his shoulders were stiff and he was avoiding eye contact. Recognising the signs of embarrassment, she found it intriguing; another unexpected reaction. She had theorised that he would have found humour in her reference to their previous conversation, as he often did when recalling such incidents with other crewmembers. Perhaps he felt ashamed of his reaction to the radiation in comparison to hers; she’d noted that he was sometimes sensitive to doubts cast on his professionalism, especially if she was the one casting them. But watching the flush on his face receding as he recovered his composure, she did not observe any retreat on his part throughout the conversation. Whatever his reason for blushing at her words, it was short-lived and not greatly affecting. He did not seem offended. Perhaps she had unintentionally teased him?

To her great interest, she also found that there was something thrilling about causing that reaction. T’Pol resolved to do some research in to possible double meaning of her words or cultural customs that may explain the Commander’s reaction. In order to avoid causing that flush from re-occurring, of course. Yes, it was definitely an avenue of enquiry she would have to explore in the future.


End file.
